The staircase seemed endless.
Elyra and Kael descended deeper into the heart of Astralis, the glow of the living city fading behind them. The air grew colder, heavier — thick with ancient magic that made the hairs on Elyra's arms stand on end.
The walls around them pulsed with faint, rhythmic light, as though the stone itself was breathing.
Finally, they reached a cavern carved by time and will alone.
At its center stood a gate — a colossal archway of blackened roots and bones, entwined like lovers in death. Symbols older than any language Elyra knew were etched into the arch, burning faintly with cold silver fire.
From beyond the gate, whispers beckoned.
Come closer... Come remember...
A figure materialized before them, woven from shadow and starlight. Its face shifted constantly — sometimes Kael's, sometimes Maeve's, sometimes Elyra's own.
"You seek the Weaving Flame," the figure intoned. Its voice layered over itself, male and female, old and young. "But it is no gift freely given. You must first surrender what binds you."
Kael stepped protectively in front of Elyra. "What do you mean?"
The figure tilted its head. "Your fears. Your guilt. Your past."
Without warning, the ground split beneath them.
Kael and Elyra were thrown apart, swallowed into separate worlds of memory and illusion.
—
Elyra's Trial
She landed hard in a garden choked with thorn and ash.
Before her stood her mother, alive — smiling, arms open. Behind her, the warm light of their old village flickered invitingly.
"Come home, Elyra," her mother called. "Forget this madness. Forget the Veil. Stay where it's safe."
Tears stung Elyra's eyes. Her mother's voice was like balm against every wound she carried.
But something was wrong.
The flowers around her mother's feet were dead. The sky behind her was bleeding.
Elyra's hand drifted to her silver dagger. The closer she looked, the more she saw: her mother's eyes were hollow. Her smile, cracked like porcelain.
It wasn't her mother. It was a memory, a trap spun from her own longing.
With trembling hands, Elyra raised her dagger — and drove it through the illusion's heart.
The figure screamed — the sound twisting into a thousand voices — before shattering into dust.
The garden collapsed around her, leaving only the cold, empty dark.
—
Kael's Trial
He stood once again in the burned fields of his youth, surrounded by fallen comrades.
Among them, his brother — Erynd — face twisted in accusation.
"You left me to die," Erynd hissed, voice full of venom. "You ran. You ran while I burned."
Kael staggered back. The memory of that day had haunted him for years — the smoke, the screaming, his own cowardice.
But this too was a lie.
"I didn't run," Kael said, voice raw. "I fought until there was nothing left to save."
He sank to his knees, pressing his forehead against the ground.
"I carry you with me," he whispered. "Every step."
The ghosts faded, and Kael was left alone, breathless — but free.
—
The Reunification
Blinding light engulfed them both.
When Elyra and Kael stumbled forward, they found themselves once again side by side before the blackened gate — but it was changed now.
The bones crumbled. The roots parted.
Beyond lay a chamber of pure flame — suspended midair, burning in colors no mortal had ever seen: blue, silver, gold, black.
At its center hovered a single spindle wrapped in living fire. The Weaving Flame.
Elyra reached for it, heart pounding. As her fingers brushed the fire, it didn't burn — it sang to her.
Threads of light coiled around her wrist, sinking into her skin, branding her with power older than stars.
Kael gasped as a portion of the flame leapt to him too, wrapping around the scars across his chest, healing and binding him anew.
Together, they had earned it.
Together, they would wield it.
But the victory was fleeting.
A tremor shook the cavern. Dust rained from the ceiling.
And from the shadows beyond the Flame, a voice spoke — deep, mocking, cruel.
"You think a spark will save you?"
Velcrin emerged from the darkness, his armored form towering, his helm gleaming like a skull under the bleeding sky.
"You've only lit the fire," he growled, raising his staff of cold flame. "Now... let it consume you."